[Fix] Apps or Scripts are Broken in Chrome / Edge 100 and Later Versions

If you upgraded Google Chrome or Microsoft Edge web browser to 100 or later versions and some apps or scripts stopped working in new versions, this article will help you in fixing the issue.

Recently version 100 of both the browsers Chrome and Edge were released to stable channel i.e. public use. Since the previous versions were using 2-digit number in User agent string and now the newer versions will use 3-digit number in UA string, it might cause issues while running some apps or scripts.

It might be possible that some of your favorite apps/scripts were using a buggy parser and become broken in Chrome and Edge 100+ versions due to User-agent parsing errors.

If those apps/scripts are important for you and you want to make them working again in 100 and later versions of these web browsers, here is a good news for you.

Chromium team has provided a hidden secret preference/flag as well as Policy to freeze or lock the browser version to 99 in User agent string which will make the broken apps and scripts functional again even if you are using 100 or later versions of these web browsers.

Once you modify the preference or implement the policy, Chrome and Edge will send the browser version number as 99 in their User agent string instead of 100 which will allow you to use the broken apps and scripts in 100 and later versions without any problem.

Following screenshot shows Chrome sending its version as 99 in User agent string even if the installed version is 100:

Similarly following screenshot shows Microsoft Edge sending its version as 99 in User agent string even if the installed version is 100:

If you want to force Chrome or Edge to keep using 99 as browser version in User agent string, following methods will help you:

Freeze Chrome and Edge Version to 99 Using Preference/Flag

1. Open Google Chrome or Microsoft Edge web browser and type chrome://flags/ in address bar and press Enter. It’ll open the advanced configuration page.

2. Now type major in the “Search flags” box.

You’ll get following option:

3. To forcefully set Chrome or Edge version to 99, select Enabled from the drop-down box for the above mentioned option.

4. Your browser will ask you to restart it. Click on “Relaunch now” or “Restart” button to restart the browser to take effects.

That’s it. Now Google Chrome or Microsoft Edge will always use a 2-digit number i.e. 99 in its user agent string and your favorite apps or scripts will start working again.

PS: In future, if you decide to restore default browser version in Chrome or Edge, set the above mentioned preference to Default and restart the browser.

Freeze Chrome and Edge Version to 99 Using Group Policy

You can also use following steps to implement a policy to force Chrome or Edge version to 99 in your device:

Freeze Google Chrome Version to 99 Using Policy

1. Press “WIN+R” key combination to launch RUN dialog box then type regedit and press Enter. It’ll open Registry Editor.

2. Now go to following key:

3. Under Policies key, create a new key and set its name to Google

4. Under Google key, create a new key and set its name to Chrome

So the final key path will be:

5. Now select Chrome key and in right-side pane, right-click and select “New -> DWORD (32-bit) Value” option. Set the new DWORD name as ForceMajorVersionToMinorPositionInUserAgent

Double-click on the DWORD and change its value to 2

It’ll freeze the major version as 99 and include the browser’s major version in the minor position in Chrome’s User-Agent string.

PS: In future, if you decide to restore default version in User agent string, delete the above mentioned DWORD from Registry.

NOTE: After applying the policy, you may notice “Your browser is managed by your organization” message in Google Chrome. Following article provides details about this message:

[Fix] Your Browser is Managed by Your Organization in Google Chrome

Freeze Microsoft Edge Version to 99 Using Policy

1. Press “WIN+R” key combination to launch RUN dialog box then type regedit and press Enter. It’ll open Registry Editor.

2. Now go to following key:

3. Under Microsoft key, create a new key and set its name to Edge

4. Now select Edge key and in right-side pane, right-click and select “New -> DWORD (32-bit) Value” option. Set the new DWORD name as ForceMajorVersionToMinorPositionInUserAgent

Double-click on the DWORD and change its value to 2

It’ll freeze the major version as 99 and include the browser’s major version in the minor position in Edge’s User-Agent string.

PS: In future, if you decide to restore default version in User agent string, delete the above mentioned DWORD from Registry.

NOTE: After applying the policy, you may notice “Your browser is managed by your organization” message in Microsoft Edge. Following article provides details about this message:

[Fix] Your Browser is Managed by Your Organization Message in Microsoft Edge

Also Check:

[Tip] Check Websites Compatibility with Chrome 100 and Microsoft Edge 100 Versions